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Iran rejects State Department’s report on terrorism

Iran on Sunday rejected the U.S. State Department annual report which concluded that the Islamic Republic remains the world's leading sponsor of terrorism.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Hossein Jaberi Ansari said the report is "false" and further evidence of the "lack of credibility of reports by the U.S. State Department," reported The Associated Press.

As in many previous years, the report identified Iran as the world's "foremost state sponsor of terrorism in 2015" through its financing, training and equipping of various armed groups, notably Lebanon's Hezbollah, as well as the government of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad.

Ansari in his rebuttal said the U.S. provides "unconditional" support for Israel as it deprives the Palestinians of basic rights and that Washington ignores the role of allies like Saudi Arabia in supporting extremist groups.

The report said that despite reaching a landmark agreement with world powers on its nuclear program, Iran continues to use the Quds Force of its Revolutionary Guard to create instability throughout the Middle East.

In addition to arming Hezbollah and the Assad government, Iran also provided weapons and other assistance to militants in Bahrain and remained active in supporting anti-Israel groups such as Hamas, the report found.

The report also determined that the Islamic State (ISIS) remains the greatest worldwide terrorist threat.

The report also found that while ISIS’s control of territory in Iraq and Syria ebbed toward the end of 2015, it remained the greatest worldwide terrorist threat with a "formidable force" of fighters in those two countries.

It also noted that ISIS followers also carried out deadly attacks in Turkey, France and Lebanon, demonstrating international capability.